links of the week

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/04/27/murdochs-denials-of-political-favors-hard-to-swallow-in-new-york/?ref=nyregion

http://www.jirimakovec.com/

As the Height of the University Center Decreased so did the Amount of its Air Rights

By Stephany Chung

The New School's ever-largest project - the construction of The University Center on 65 5^th Avenue – initially planned on buying air rights from six buildings, which would have made it the tallest building in Greenwich Village. However, due to economic constraints, the university bought unused development rights, also known as air rights from one of its adjacent buildings.

“Development rights generally refer to the maximum amount of floor area permissible on a zoning lot. When the actual built floor area is less than the maximum permitted floor area, the difference is referred to as ‘unused development rights.’ Unused development rights are often described as air rights,” according to the Zoning Glossary from New York City Department of City Planning.

The University Center will be 16 stories high, 178 feet tall, and add 354,000 square feet to the campus.

The community – New School students and faculty, elector officials, Greenwich Village and Union Square neighbors - accepted this redesigned proposal in 2010.

In 2006, Roger Duffy from Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) – an American architect of this architectural firm who designed this building – originally proposed that the university needed to build a center with a height of 350 feet and an area of 500,000 square feet in order to accommodate the school’s growth. The body of the center would have been 300 feet with an additional 50 feet of mechanical systems on top.

“Air rights from up to six other nearby properties would have been piled on top, which likely would have made it Greenwich Village’s biggest building, besting 1 5^th Ave., which is 321 feet tall,” according to The Villager.

Height and size of the original proposal of the University Center in 2006. 

The school needed to scale down because of budgeting issues and SOM put together a more affordable design.

According to Howard Bressler, Senior Director of Real Estate for The New School, the university bought air rights from the building directly to the east of the University Center on 10 East 14^th Street. The Amalgamated Bank occupies the first floor of this adjacent building and the floors above are apartments.

The building of 10 East 14th Street is on the left, east to the University Center.
Courtesy of Google Maps 

According to the Zoning Glossary, this type of development right is called “zoning lot merger.” It is combining two or more adjacent zoning lots into one new lot. Through a zoning lot merger, unused development rights can be transferred from one lot to another.

A diagram of "zoning lot merger." Courtesy of NYC Department of City Planning

The university bought 12,756 square feet and paid $137 per foot - a “reasonable” price that the school negotiated with its neighbors, according to Sam Biederman, Associate Director of University Communications.

The cost of air rights depends on the district the building is located. It is also based on an arms length transaction between the seller and buyer.

Bressler explains the basic air rights policy in Manhattan. In order for a building to purchase air rights, it must share a common lot line of at least 10 feet in length – to the left, right, or behind. If the building is able to buy from one lot, it adjoins the next lot; therefore, it can work its way down the street for additional air rights. However, if one of these buildings in the middle does not want to sell its air space, the building cannot skip lots; it must share a common lot line.

Although the community objected other aspects of the original building plan, Biederman shares how air rights was not one of its major issues.

“There were no significant conflicts in securing air rights.”

links

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/arrested-tuition-protest-cooper-union-manhattan-east-village-article-1.1067760

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/26/nyregion/bloomberg-vows-court-fight-over-councils-wage-bills.html?ref=nyregion

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/25/nyregion/for-christine-quinns-wedding-politics-may-be-uninvited-guest.html

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/mike-lupica-nypd-commissioner-raymond-kelly-a-great-mayor-article-1.1067010?pgno=1

City Livery Cabbies Take to the Streets with New Passenger Hails

By Harrison Golden

Despite an economy of polarizing swings and disappointing investments, Sushil Maggoo considers himself financially stable. As one of New York City’s yellow cab drivers and medallion owners, he and his colleagues have monopolized the Manhattan street hail.

Maggoo paid nearly $215,000 for his medallion in 2003. Now, its cost has over tripled to $700,000. And while the average yellow taxi driver brings home $50,000 a year, he claims to make over six figures annually, thanks to his purchase.

But last Thursday, the Taxi and Limousine Commission passed a vote that will let 18,000 livery cab drivers pick up street hails above 96th Street on Manhattan’s east side, above 110th Street on the west side, and within each of the outer boroughs. Once that rule takes effect on June 1, Maggoo says, the value of his medallion – and of the city’s trademark yellow cabs – will plummet.

“Yellow cabs are a brand,” he added. “I worry that liveries will take that away from us.”

Livery drivers celebrated the vote’s passage, saying it will better enable them to capitalize on neighborhoods where yellow cabs are less present and available.

NY Post

“Why are [yellow cabbies] so concerned about business they never had in the first place?” said Rafael, a livery driver with the Queens-based Blue Line Limo who declined to give his last name. “They spend most of their time in Manhattan anyway. Now all of a sudden, they’re pretending they need help from people in Queens and Brooklyn and the Bronx.”

Just minutes after Thursday’s vote at Brooklyn Borough Hall, TLC Chairman David Yassky broke up an argument between a taxi fleet owner and a livery base owner. He later ordered them both to leave, insisting that the city unite on the rule.

“We’re seeing the birth of a new service that will allow communities throughout the five boroughs to enjoy and come to rely on the same levels of quality taxi service that are only experienced in portions of Manhattan,” Yassky told the Queens Courier.

The TLC has promised to regulate livery cabs more closely in light of the reform. The vehicles will all be painted in one, yet-to-be-determined color, so that passengers can differentiate them from the yellow cabs. The liveries will also feature meters and a similar fare structure.

The commission has also promised to aggressively pursue livery drivers who pick up street hails in the forbidden zone, and will soon increase the number of enforcement agents from 60 to 160. Any driver who breaks the rules is subject to vehicle confiscation. But yellow cab drivers are still wary of Thursday’s ruling and are convinced that it will only take away business.

“We hope our arguments will persuade TLC commissioners to reject these rules,” said Michael Woloz, spokesman for the Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade. “Letting livery cabs pick up these street hails would quickly damage yellow-cabbies who have worked so hard to get to where they are.”

Maggoo remains hopeful that yellow cabs will not lose business as a result of the new rule.

“We’ve got a reputation in this city,” Maggoo added. “Through these changes, I hope New Yorkers remember what we have done for them.”

Aspiring Actor to Actor's Equity

Earlier this month, 21-year-old Lisa O’Brien went to Boston for a night for an audition.  She was reading for a part in The Lonesome West, a five-person-play by Martin McDonough, being put on by the Irish theater company Tír Na.  Later that night, she got a call that every aspiring actor hopes for; she got the part; she was now a working actress.

(tirnatheatre.org)

“I was elated,” O’Brien said.  “To know that I’m going to be making money by acting and that I wouldn’t have to get a waitressing job or babysitting job to earn some cash.”

Landing this role also brings her one step closer to becoming a member of the most powerful union for stage actors in America; The Actor’s Equity Association.  According to their website, The Actors Equity Association was founded in 1913 and represents more than 49,000 actors and stage managers in the United States.

“By doing the show I earn Equity points,” O’Brien said.  “It usually takes a few union shows to get an Equity card, and once you have an equity card, you get the benefits of the union.”

Earning equity points is part of the Associations Equity Membership Candidate Program.  It allows actors to earn credits for their work in theater productions in participating theaters.  After fifty weeks of work, they can send in an application with a payment of $400 to become an Equity member.

Alternatively, actors can become a member by employment under an Equity contract or by prior membership to sister Unions such as the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Arts.

Benefits for members include health insurance, a pension plan, exclusive access to members-only auditions, tax assistance, free housing while on tour, and a fixed minimum salary.  The 2011-2015 contract states that the minimum wage for a actor in a production on Broadway and National Tours is $1,703 per week.  Stage managers earn $2,799 a week for a musical and $2,405 for a play.

Lisa performing in Loose Knit
(photo by Mark Wyville)

Actors Equity is perhaps most essential for actors wishing to work on Broadway, as most Broadway only hire union members.  This can prove to be a problem for those who are ineligible to join.

“Actor’s Equity…doesn’t recognize visas of any kind,” said Irish actress Lauren Farrell. “They only employ citizens or green card holders.  So if I stay, on any kind of visa, I can’t ever get hired for a Broadway.”

Luckily for Lisa, who was born in Ireland but whose mother is American, she has dual citizenship. Working as an actress in the US and joining the Actors Equity is a very real possibility for her, and she is already off to a good start.

Last Wednesday, she walked across the stage at Broadway’s Majestic Theater to collect her diploma of acting from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.  This week she begins rehearsals for The Lonesome West, which will run at the Davis Square Theater in Somerville, Massachusetts from May 17^th until June 3^rd.  The production company Tír Na has productions around the country and Europe and O’Brien hopes that this may lead to other roles in the future.

Lisa at the AADA class of 2012 Graduation Ceremony, Majestic Theater, NYC

But for now, she already has another gig lined up for when The Lonesome West ends.  This week, she was invited to join The Academy Company, a year-long production for graduating AADA students, in which they put on a series of plays around New York City theaters to talent agents, casting directors and other industry professionals.

“I had really began to doubt that I would get into the Academy Company,” O’Brien says.  “I saw nearly every one of the 90 actors in my year perform and the level of talent blew my mind. To be asked was really an honor and shock, but I’m so excited to be doing full professional productions for a year!”

These recent opportunities have changed her career ambitions.

“I used to think I would mostly be in film,” she said “but the more theater training I get, the more I love it.  I want to be working consistently… and comfortably, and if I’m going to do that in America, then the Actors Equity Association is definitely something I’ve got my eye one.”

Robert Moses: The Cross Bronx Expressway

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1FOl87Sgbf4VRIENDZN3LZsyg-Ii5ZEvUL-QtkZQNmaE/edit

Out of a Mountain of Despair, A Stone of Lies

I

While attending Boston University in June of 1952, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. joined the first ever black, inter-collegiate fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha - whose roots stretch back to 1906.  Sixteen years later, Alpha Phi Alpha proposed erecting a permanent memorial to King in Washington D.C after his assassination.  When King’s birthday was declared a national holiday in 1986, the fraternity’s efforts gained momentum and two decades of planning, fund-raising and construction were put into place until the memorial finally opened to the public in August of 2011.  After 20 years of hard work, some claim the memorial to be an embarrassment due to the semi-permanent paraphrased King quotes used for the memorial.

One of the two quotes appearing on the Stone of Hope and attributed to King reads, "I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness," a paraphrased version of King's actual words, which were, "If you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter." 

A Washington Post reporter noticed the changes from the original speech to the memorial and publicized the paraphrases in an August 2011 column, arguing that the paraphrased quote misrepresented King and the meaning of the 1968 sermon that the quote came from.

Poet Maya Angelou, a consultant on the memorial also agreed with the Post reporter and told the post in an interview last August, "The quote makes Dr. Martin Luther King look like an arrogant twit...It makes him seem less than the humanitarian he was...It makes him seem an egotist." She also pointed out, "The 'if' clause that is left out is salient. Leaving it out changes the meaning completely."

According to the project's lead architect, Ed Jackson, the correction of the quote is not a simple matter, as the current inscription is chiseled into granite rock.  Changing the quote will be expensive and possibly not attainable.  “Replacing the quotation is impossible without destroying the entire monument,” Jackson said.  “As the entire quotation will not fit on the monument, the replacement will still be a paraphrase.”  

II

On a recent trip to D.C, five King memorial bystanders were asked their opinions of the paraphrased quotes. 

“Oh, I remember him coming to Brooklyn in the early 60s and his words were just magical, magical!  This is my first time at the memorial and I’m saddened to see the shortened quote…he deserved better than a paraphrase.”

Maggie Jackson, 70, Brooklyn, NY

“Well I was here as a boy when he made the ‘I Have a Dream Speech’ and I’m personally disgusted with the paraphrases…this isn’t what he said and this isn’t what he meant.”

Justin Jones, 65, Washington D.C  

“They are paraphrased?  Really?  I’m not sure how I feel about that…I had no idea.  That seems really ridiculous to me, though.”

Zach Rosen, 18, Jacksonville, FL

“It doesn’t bother me.  I don’t know, I’m young and I wasn’t there for any of the speeches, so to me, these quotes are still meaningful.  They all still resonate with me.  They all still clearly evoke emotions from people who read them.”

Tyler Conner, 23, Philadelphia, PA

“I was here for the speeches on the Lincoln Memorial…I’m deeply saddened to come all the way out here and see that this memorial isn’t accurate.”

Mary Wren, 80, San Francisco, CA

III

The centerpiece for the memorial is based on a line from King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, “out of a mountain of despair, a stone of hope.”  A 30 feet high statue of King entitled, “Stone of Hope,” stands just past two other pieces of granite that symbolize “the mountain of despair.”  Visitors can walk through the Mountain of Despair as they make their way to the Stone of Hope, symbolically moving their way through the struggles as Dr. King did.      

Located in West Potomac Park, against the backdrop of the Lincoln Memorial, views of the Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial lies the King memorial - King is not the first African American memorial in D.C but is the first African American honored with a memorial on or near the National Mall and is the forth non-president to be memorialized with a life-like sculpture.  The official address of the monument is 1964 Independence Avenue, to commemorate the year that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law.

Harry E. Johnson, the President and Chief Officer of the memorial foundation added these words in a letter posted on the memorials website in 2011: “The King Memorial is envisioned as a quiet and peaceful space. Yet drawing from Dr. King's speeches and using his own rich language, the King Memorial will almost certainly change the heart of every person who visits.” 

May 1st Events

Website with Full Schedule

1.

“Pop-up University"

Free Courses/Lectures/Discussions

Madison Square 10am-3pm

2.

Occupy Guitarmy

Bryant Park

12pm

3.

“May Day Wildcat March”

Second Street and Houston

1pm

4.

May 1^st High School Walkout (Brooklyn)

BBQ/Teach-in/Workshop @ Fort Green Park

After 12pm walkout

5.

Union Square Concert

Tom Morello, Das Racist, Dan Deacon, Immortal Technique

Union Square @ 4pm

 

Robert Moses Article

http://www.nytimes.com/1987/05/11/nyregion/scrutinizing-the-legacy-of-robert-moses.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

Robert Moses Article

http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/1218.html

pulitzer prize winner

http://www.democracynow.org/2012/4/17/ap_wins_pulitzer_for_exposing_growth

Robert Moses

Robert Moses NYTimes Link

ROBERT MOSES LINKS

Just from Wikipedia, "In later years, some further criticisms have been made of the book, mainly that it overstates the extent of Moses's power in the 1960s. In the 21st century, as many have decried the inability of American public institutions to construct and maintain infrastructure projects, a more positive view of Moses' career has emerged. Then-future governor Eliot Spitzer, in a 2006 speech to the Regional Plan Association on downstate transportation needs, said a biography of Moses written today might be called At Least He Got It Built. "That's what we need today. A real commitment to get things done."'^[4]

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0DE3D61F30F93BA15752C0A9619C8B63&ref=robertmoses

Who’s Having More Fun? comparing student events at New York colleges

Big Gigantic performing at Columbia Spring Concert 2012
(columbiaspectator.com)

On Saturday afternoon, beneath a scorching sun, a few thousand-college students crowded the steps of Columbia University’s main campus in Harlem.  At the bottom of the steps, a group of college seniors stood with oversized water guns, soaking the crowd.  For four hours, the crowd partied through live sets from surf-punk band Wavves, New Orleans rapper Curren$y and electronic duo Big Gigantic. 

“I wish our school would do something like this,” said Pat Nicholas, a psychology major at Eugene Lang who attended the concert.

Throughout the semester, The New School hosts multiple student events every week.  Throughout April, there are at least two events to choose from each day of the month, except for three days over Easter Weekend.  These events range from Indoor Field Day, which involves dodgeball, basketball and a pizza party, to Auricular Acupuncture.  But when compared to student events at nearby colleges, The New School seems to come up lacking.

Columbia University holds an annual Spring Concert and an annual outdoor movie screening on 4/20. NYU hosts the Strawberry Festival with live music on the last day of classes each spring.  Purchase College in upstate New York puts on a three-day music festival for its students.

So what do these other colleges have that the New School doesn’t?  Money.

“Our budget for the concert is around $108,000,” said Marisa Rama, a senior at Columbia. Rama is a member of student club Bacchanal, responsible for the spring concert and the 4/20 movie screening.  “Part of the funding comes from a school allocation and then class councils within the college donate part of their budget, which also comes from the school.”

(Marisa Rama, taken from her Facebook)

Rama pointed out that most colleges who have spring concerts charge admission, giving them a much bigger budget, but the Columbia event is free.  In previous years, when headliners included Snoop Dogg, Kanye West and Vampire Weekend, the event was exclusive to only those with a Columbia University ID.   This year, however, the more obscure lineup meant that the it was an open event.

According to Kate Walbert, a member of the Student Development and Activities Department at the New School, most student events are run by student organizations and most funding comes from the school. 

Each department at the college receives funding from the university.  The Student Development and Activities Department shares its budget between its various projects, student organizations and civic engagement.  There are approximately fifty student organizations within Student Development and Activities, and the department gives each of its groups a budget of $300.

“They can request additional funding from the University Student Senate and the Student Activities Finance Committee,” Walbert said. 

Most events occur on a weekly basis, but perhaps the most popular are the one-time or annual events, such as the block party held at the start of the fall semester.

“Committees are sometimes formed to plan large events,” Walbert says.  “Last year one student put on a battle of the bands that was very successful and there was a student services committee that formed last year to plan a spring concert in the Tishman auditorium.

New School Block Party
(blogs.newschool.edu)

Walbert didn’t disclose the budget for this concert, but it’s unlikely that it matched Columbia’s $108,000. 

“I think it’s big events like the Columbia concert that help cement a feeling of school community,” said Pat Nicholas, “something that The New School doesn’t really have a lot of.  But how do you do that without any money?”  

New York Memes

http://youtu.be/-xnxSx921fs

Bringing New York to New Heights

By Harrison Golden

When architect Ju-Hyun Kim moved to Manhattan ten years ago, the skyscrapers, parks, shops, and bodies of water left him in awe. But there was one feature the city was missing – a mountain.

Kim, born and raised in Seoul, used to spend his time hiking, skiing, biking, and picnicking from atop some of his native city’s highest peaks. Now, in his new home city, he hopes to bring an artificial mountain to the Lower East Side.

The proposal, tentatively called Manhattan Mountain, features a series of big-box stores, including Ikea, Target, and Best Buy, at ground level. Kim says that the new locations will bring reasonably priced goods and job opportunities to locals. The mountain would serve as a rooftop and provide a forest, a habitat for birds and insects, and an outdoor activity hub for tourists and New Yorkers alike.

“Mountains are the original skyscrapers,” said Kim, in an email. “Just imagine how this forest in the mountain can emit fresh air and provide a habitat for animals.”


New Yorkers likely know Kim from his previous failed ambition -- a skyscraper-sized roller coaster. Critics claimed that, too, was not a practical step for city construction. Kim has not yet made any estimates regarding his newest project's cost, nor the safety precautions he would take. But he insists that his plan will shock New Yorkers who had previously not had access to mountains.


"I have always believed in making people look twice at a structure or landmark," he added. "Manhattan Mountain will make the city fun again."

The mountain would replace the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area, a seven-acre tract of undeveloped land along Delancey and Grand Streets. City planners once hoped to provide low-income housing on the property but decided to build on a nearby lot instead. The land has been untouched since 1967 and remains Manhattan’s largest city-owned vacant plot south of 96^th Street.

City developers have a different plan in mind. Public space planners turn the site into a public park. But Kim feels that the plan lacks originality and unoriginal, and wouldn’t bring NYC the kind of change it needs.

But area residents argue that they should be reserved for low-income families to preserve the neighborhood’s flavor and recapture people forced out by Manhattan’s rising rents.

“The costs of rent all across the city are skyrocketing,” said Abe Rothberg, a 45-year resident of the Lower East Side. “There is no community that lower and middle classes can call home anymore.”

Members of Community Board 3 will hold a public hearing on April 18 in order to develop a consensus on Kim’s plan, among other proposals for the site. The board will vote on the land use application at the end of May, at which time the City Planning Commission, the Borough President and the City Council will all share their thoughts.

“There are still a lot of facts we need to gather before choosing a design,” said Susan Stetzer, district manager of Community Board 3. “We need to look at finances, public safety risks, and we must hear what the people of our community have to say about it. Right now, nothing is off limits and nothing is being approved.”

Moravian House: An Open Door for Those in Need

A traditional pointed Moravian star hangs in the entrance to Moravian Open Door, followed by a narrow and dimly lit corridor that leads to a small front desk. After passing through this dim entrance, stairs lead to a basement where a kitchen and common room are located. These rooms serve as bright areas in a building that at first seems dull. “We're not trying to save the world,” said Executive Director Darryl Williams while sitting at a table in the common room, “but we're trying to help one person at a time.”

Client Arthur Burke and Executive Director Darryl Williams

The Moravian Open Door, opened in 1986, is a non-profit organization that provides transitional housing and services to  homeless, distressed, and underserved individuals 50 years and older. The organization believes that within the general homeless population, older adults are most at risk for neglect and violence.

Moravian Open Door is a transitional home (called Moravian House), and is not a temporary shelter. The building holds only 41 beds for homeless adults who are often just one step away from living independently. Eligibility rests only upon being 50 years or older, although clients also have to pay a small stipend each month to keep their room.

Williams has been director of the organization for ten years, many of which have not been easy. "We struggled," said Williams, also discussing the staff members that work at Moravian House. In addition to Williams, only a case worker and program coordinator work to run the programs for residents and oversee the building and services that are provided. 

"Volunteers are always welcome," said case worker Desiree Barrett. Barrett has been working at Moravian House for five years and has overseen 13 clients. "Of course I've had many meaningful experiences during my time here," she said with increased interest. Barrett specifically spoke of one client who spent 22 years at the shelter and finally left to live independently. "I was really happy for her," Barrett said. 

A current client at Moravian House, Arthur Burke, did not feel comfortable going into details about why he lives at the shelter, but spoke highly of the program coordinator. "Michael is a wonderful care taker," said Burke.

Burke also made a positive note of the recently implemented breakfast program. New equipment for the shelter's kitchen that was recently donated by the Moravian Church has made a breakfast program possible.

"I'm glad you like it, Mr. Burke, because I've been fighting for this program for years!" said Williams. With the new equipment, food can be prepared in the mornings for clients. Although breakfast is currently the only meal provided, Williams is hopeful for a dinner program in the future.  

Moravian Open Door is established under the Eastern District of the Moravian Church in American and is the only urban social ministry of the Northern Province of the Church. Because of this affiliation, the organization does not get funding through the state or government and relies heavily on donations. This makes it difficult to begin and implement programs and changes.

Williams said that although he is the executive director of Moravian House, he does not have a high salary. This makes no difference to him, however. “It gives me meaning to help people who others might not even acknowledge as, well, human beings,” Williams said. 

Moravian Open Door will be celebrating a 25^th anniversary in September. Visit www.moravianhouse.org to learn more about the organization and how to get involved.